Nano Banana 2.1 vs Nano Banana 2.
Google released 2.1 as an update to Nano Banana 2 and tells developers to use it for every new project. This page puts the two side by side on Google's own price list, the Arena leaderboards and the spec sheet, and says plainly where the older model still has an edge.
Which one to pick.
Pick Nano Banana 2.1. It costs 50% less per 1K image and 50% less per 2K image than Nano Banana 2, ranks higher on both Arena boards, and shares its reference-image limit, aspect ratios and 4K output. Google itself lists 2.1 as the replacement.
The one capability you give up is Nano Banana 2's 0.5K size, and the saving is smaller at 4K, where 2.1 is 25% cheaper rather than half.
- Choose Nano Banana 2.1 for
- Anyone starting a project, anyone paying per image at 1K or 2K, and anyone who wants the stronger Arena placement.
- Choose Nano Banana 2 for
- Pipelines that depend on the 0.5K size, or that cannot revalidate output after a model change.
The two side by side.
Google's published figures as of 2026-10-07. Prices are Google's list prices per image, not Autotube's.
| Nano Banana 2.1 | Nano Banana 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Google's name | Gemini Nano Banana 2.1 (gemini-nano-banana-2.1) | Gemini 3.1 Flash Image (gemini-3.1-flash-image) |
| Released | October 6, 2026 | February 26, 2026 as a preview; stable May 28, 2026 |
| Google's status | Current. No shutdown date announced. | Still offered, with no shutdown date announced. Google recommends Nano Banana 2.1 for all new projects. |
| Output sizes | 1K, 2K and 4K (no 0.5K) | 0.5K, 1K, 2K and 4K |
| Aspect ratios | 14, including the wide and tall 1:4, 4:1, 1:8 and 8:1 | 14, including 1:4, 4:1, 1:8 and 8:1 |
| Reference images | Up to 14 (up to 10 objects and 4 characters) | Up to 14 (up to 10 objects and 4 characters) |
| Price per 1K image | $0.0336 | $0.067 |
| Price per 2K image | $0.0504 | $0.101 |
| Price per 4K image | $0.113 | $0.151 |
| Batch API price per 1K image | $0.0168 | $0.034 |
| Arena text-to-image (2026-10-06) | #5, score 1,328 (preliminary) | #11, score 1,261 |
| Arena image edit (2026-10-06) | #6, score 1,428 (preliminary) | #14, score 1,387 |
| 0.5K output | Not supported | Supported, $0.045 per 0.5K image |
| Votes behind the Arena image-edit score | 12,985 (preliminary) | 229,782 |
Arena (arena.ai) scores are rank and rating on its own boards, last updated 2026-10-06; they are never mixed here with another leaderboard’s scale. Arena marks a new model’s scores preliminary until enough votes are in. Nano Banana is a trademark of Google, and Autotube is not affiliated with Google.
What the leaderboards say.
On Arena's text-to-image board, Nano Banana 2.1 sits at #5 with a score of 1,328, 67 points above Nano Banana 2 at #11 (1,261). On the image-edit board it is #6 on 1,428 against #14 on 1,387, a gap of 41. Both figures were read on the board's October 6, 2026 update.
Treat the 2.1 numbers as provisional. Arena marks them preliminary, because the model had only just launched and has far fewer votes than its predecessor: 12,985 on the edit board against 229,782 for Nano Banana 2. A score built on few votes can move, and it is the ordering, not the exact gap, that is worth taking from this.
Google's own list of what changed is improved visual quality and realism at every size, fixed tiling artifacts on the wide and panoramic ratios (1:4, 4:1, 1:8, 8:1) at 2K and 4K, and better text rendering and infographic layout accuracy. Launch coverage from Decrypt added sharper mask-based editing and better subject consistency. Those are Google's and the press's descriptions rather than independent measurements, so the leaderboard is the better evidence and the list is context.
Roughly half the price at 1K and 2K.
Google's list prices per output image are $0.0336 at 1K, $0.0504 at 2K and $0.113 at 4K for Nano Banana 2.1, against $0.067, $0.101 and $0.151 for Nano Banana 2. That is 50% less at 1K, 50% less at 2K and 25% less at 4K.
The "about half" headline is true for the two sizes most people use, and it is not true at 4K. The Batch API follows the same pattern at 1K: $0.0168 per image for 2.1 against $0.034. These are Google API prices; resellers such as Replicate set their own, and ours are in credits.
Almost everything carries over.
Both models take up to 14 reference images, split by Google as up to 10 objects and 4 characters. Both offer 1K, 2K and 4K output, the same 14 aspect ratios including the wide and tall 1:4, 4:1, 1:8 and 8:1, thinking mode and the Batch API, and both can ground a prompt in Google Web and Image Search.
The single difference in Google's spec sheet is the smallest size. Nano Banana 2 adds a 0.5K output that Google says Nano Banana 2.1 does not support. If you generate tiny drafts or previews, that is the only reason this page has to send you back to the older model.
Nano Banana 2 is still offered, with 2.1 named as its successor.
Google's deprecations table, last updated October 7, 2026, lists Nano Banana 2 (gemini-3.1-flash-image) as stable with no shutdown date announced, and lists gemini-nano-banana-2.1 as its recommended replacement. Google's image-generation guide goes further and recommends 2.1 for all new projects. The earlier preview identifier, gemini-3.1-flash-image-preview, was shut down on June 25, 2026.
No shutdown date for the stable model is not a promise that there will not be one. A product that would be hard to move later is better started on the model Google is steering people toward.
Nano Banana 2.1 is what Autotube runs.
Autotube runs every Nano Banana scene on Nano Banana 2.1 now, at 1K by default with a 2K tier for scenes that need a full 1080p frame. Nano Banana 2 is retired in Autotube. Every scene that used it, and every preset that had it selected, now runs on Nano Banana 2.1 at the same 1K tier, and 2.1 also offers a 2K tier for scenes that need a full 1080p frame.
11 credits per image
How Autotube uses Nano Banana 2.1·What a credit is, and what a video costs
Nano Banana 2.1 vs Nano Banana 2: common questions
Where the figures come from.
Read on 2026-10-07. Provider pages change; check them before you commit money.
Weighing something else?
Make the next one in Autotube.
Bring a title. The app shows the exact credit cost before it runs a thing.